Last week we looked at websites that would help you choose a great web font. Those sites pointed out several criteria to consider when choosing fonts for your website. With those criteria in mind, it’s time to search for cool web fonts.

This week I’m sharing with you links to websites where you can find fonts – both free and for sale. Several of these websites also provide a tool for previewing their fonts. Enjoy.

1. Google Web Fonts and Google Fonts Blog

A blog from Google about fonts and their tool for finding free, open-source web fonts.

Note: The tool may not work with older browsers and sometimes using the hyperlink doesn’t work right. If so, try just pasting this link into your browser’s address bar: http://www.google.com/webfonts/

2. Fonts Live

Fonts Live is a firm that markets web fonts. They recently introduced a tool that allows a user to experiment with Fonts Live products to see how their website would look. This link takes you to their blog entry about that tool.

3. Typekit

Many WordPress themes make it easy to use Typekit fonts. Typekit has pricing plans for their fonts based on the number of your websites and monthly page views. Typekit fonts can be purchased on their website or via your WordPress blog.

Typekit just introduced a new tool to preview their fonts on a WordPress.com blog. The link I’ve included here is to a post that provides a video explaining how to use the preview tool. The tool is not available for WordPress.org blogs.

4. Typedia

Typedia is an encyclopedia of typefaces. Here’s how they describe themselves:

In a nutshell, Typedia is a community website to classify typefaces and educate people about them. Think of it like a mix between IMDb and Wikipedia, but just for type. Anyone can join, add, and edit pages for typefaces or for the people behind the type.

The Explore tab in Typedia allows searches for fonts based on popularity, tags, classifications, designer, and foundry. For many of the fonts you will find a sample of the font, an explanation from the designer, and information on how you can obtain the font.

5. My Fonts and My Fonts Blog

My Fonts is a division of Bitstream. Their website offers numerous fonts for sale and a forum to help users answer their font related questions. They offer more than 62,000 fonts from over 800 foundries. They also provide an automatic tool (What the Font) for identifying fonts.

6. Template Monster Blog

This link takes you to a post that offers links to 50 free novelty fonts that they identified in 2010.

Bonus Link – Web Typography for the Lonely

This is a brand new website that went live in July 2011. Though it is not a source for fonts, it is an interesting exploration of typography on the Internet. As the writer explains:

Web Typography for the Lonely is an ongoing collection of experiments and writings on web typography and the possibilities of standards-based web design. It aims to inspire the web community by pushing the boundaries of what is both possible and practical in web standards in a manner that is compelling and exciting to the visually-minded creative. It is kept miserable by Christopher Clark. Fonts are hosted by Typekit. It’s not like you loved me enough to care.

Where Next?

Please take a look at these links and tell me in the comments if you found them useful. Also, please share any good links that you have.

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